Third Committee Delegates Urge Efforts to Reverse ‘Global Backlash’ on Women’s Rights, End ‘Gender Apartheid’
The global backlash against women’s and girls’ rights has escalated to extreme levels in some countries, threatening to undo decades of progress, experts told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as delegates underscored the urgent need to dismantle systems of inequality and discrimination, including “gender apartheid.”
Issues related to women’s advancement are a central focus of the Committee’s work, sparking robust debate from multiple perspectives.
“Women and girls continue to be primarily targeted by the use of gender‑based and sexual violence as a tactic of war to humiliate, dominate, instil fear in and relocate communities,” said Ana Peláez Narváez, Chair of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. Detailing the organ’s work, she said it responded to the high toll of women and children killed, wounded and displaced by the ongoing war in the Middle East by adopting statements urgently calling for a ceasefire and inclusive peace talks with equal representation of women. It will also heed the call of the Pact for the Future by adopting its draft general recommendation No. 40 on the equal and inclusive representation of women in decision-making systems.
In the same vein, Reem Alsalem, Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences, observed that armed conflict exemplifies the serious regressions in upholding the rights of women and girls. International humanitarian law is facing its most existential crisis since the Second World War, subjecting thousands of civilians — including women and girls — to the most atrocious war crimes and crimes against humanity, she said, pointing to the situation in Palestine, where women and girls are subjected to extreme dehumanization, ethnic cleansing and genocide.
She then presented her report on pervasive violence against women and girls in sport, stressing that unequal pay, the burden of caregiving and underrepresentation in leadership are just a few examples of the hurdles women face. She voiced particular concern over the increasing intrusion of male individuals in female-only sports, which further erodes the integrity and safety of women’s and girls’ sports. In addition to the lack of political will, sports organizations are often not equipped with the resources to prevent violence or respond to the needs of survivors, she pointed out, underscoring the need to ensure robust protections, accountability and fair conditions for women and girls in sports.
“Despite some advancements, no country in the world has achieved gender equality,” stressed Laura Nyirinkindi, Chair of the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, presenting her report on the escalating backlash against gender equality (document A/79/153). Afghanistan is an extreme example of gender backlash, with the pattern of large-scale systematic violations of women’s and girls’ fundamental rights, imposed by discriminatory and misogynistic edicts. “These policies and harsh enforcement methods of the Taliban constitute an institutionalized framework of apartheid based on gender and merit an unequivocal response,” she asserted, calling for the inclusion of the crime of gender apartheid in a new treaty on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity. “The realization of substantive gender equality cannot be further delayed,” she asserted.
Spotlighting her report on trafficking in women and girls, with a focus on survivors, (document A/79/322), Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director for Programme, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), said that women victims of the scourge experience extreme violence at rates three times higher than that of men. Noting “deeply entrenched gender biases in legal systems” and “a global culture of impunity”, she stressed that although perpetrators of human trafficking are predominantly male, the rate of conviction for women is disproportionately high. Accordingly, she emphasized that gender-sensitive justice can be achieved through free legal aid and non-punitive approaches for victims, calling for long-term reintegration support for survivors and renewed prevention efforts that tackle gender inequality — the root cause of trafficking.
Focusing on the issue of obstetric fistula, Ayman Abdelmohsen, Chief of the sexual and reproductive health branch, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), presented his report (document A/79/112), which details efforts to end the scourge within a decade. Every day, thousands of women suffer preventable death and injury during childbirth, he said, describing obstetric fistula as severe maternal morbidity occurring during childbirth when the baby cannot move into the birth canal. Along with a 90 per cent baby mortality rate, the injury results in life-long urinary incontinence and community isolation. Moreover, fistula deepens existing vulnerabilities, creating “a vicious circle of poverty and disadvantage” and exposing a failure to uphold women’s and girls’ right to equitable access to essential obstetric and emergency care. Outlining recommendations, he stressed the need to prevent child and teenage pregnancy, increase access to skilled birth attendants and address social determinants such as poverty, gender inequality and child marriage.
Key points highlighted:
- ‘gender mainstreaming’ crucial across all sectors
- ‘gender persecution’ crime against humanity
- women’s full participation in public life prerequisite for socioeconomic development
In the ensuing discussion, many delegates warned against increasing violence against women and girls across private, public and online spaces, stressing that the prevalence of discriminatory frameworks and laws against women and girls requires “a collective change in awareness of gender relations”.
The representative of Kyrgyzstan, speaking on behalf of 75 countries, cited the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and its optional protocol as “key” legal instruments. And while 189 States have ratified the Convention, a relatively large number of States parties have made substantive reservations to article 2, which contains the central commitment of parties to eradicate all forms of discrimination against women, including gender-based discrimination. Such substantive reservations — directed at those provisions seeking to eliminate discrimination in the private sphere of work, home and family — “clearly undermine the object and purpose of the Convention,” she said, encouraging the States parties concerned to withdraw those reservations.
Underlining the need to prioritize gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, the representative of Thailand, speaking on behalf of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), said gender mainstreaming is crucial across all sectors, including education, environment, culture, health, justice and peace and security. Noting the need to scale up efforts to integrate gender mainstreaming in the work of all relevant sectors, he spotlighted the ASEAN Gender Mainstreaming Strategic Framework 2021–2025.
Turning to the situation in Afghanistan, Albania’s delegate, speaking on behalf of 77 countries, drew attention to the 81‑plus edicts, which undermine the rights of women and girls there. “These abuses are unacceptable,” she said, pointing to the law “on the promotion of virtue and prevention of vice”, effectively banning women’s voices and faces in public. Confined entirely to private spaces, they are increasingly exposed to trafficking, domestic violence and forced marriage. “We deplore the ongoing restrictions on women and girls’ employment and education [representing] a loss of a generation’s potential to contribute to their families,” she stated, calling on the Taliban to cease blocking humanitarian aid to women and children, reverse all edicts and ensure justice and accountability.
Also voicing concern over the “appalling” gender-based discrimination and violence committed by the Taliban, the representative of the European Union, speaking in her capacity as observer, said it may amount to “gender persecution” — a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute, to which Afghanistan is a party. Amid global tensions and escalating violence, she highlighted the increased risk of sexual violence that women and girls face in conflict. “This is a war crime,” she asserted, adding that “fighting impunity for these heinous acts must remain our common task”.
The representative of Grenada, speaking on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), said that “the full participation of women and girls in public life is a prerequisite for economic and social development”. However, by 2030, 8.1 per cent of women globally will live in extreme poverty. The upcoming 2025 commemoration of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action plan will offer an occasion to address obstacles to women’s economic development and increase funding for developing countries from the international community. In CARICOM countries, women are partners in development and poverty eradication, and their full participation is guaranteed through robust social protections and equal access to education, healthcare and economic opportunities, he added.
However, said Chad’s delegate, speaking on behalf of the African Group, “very little can be done without financial means”. Noting that women without resources are more vulnerable to violence and discrimination, he stressed that empowerment through decent work and entrepreneurship is vital for women living in both rural and urban areas. To that end, the African Union adopted the “Declaration on 2015 Year of Women’s Empowerment and Development” as part of its Agenda 2063, committed to ensuring women’s access to financial skills and promoting quotas for financial institutions supporting female entrepreneurship.